Feastful* thinking…

Recently, I had dinner with two wonderful friends at a renowned restaurant called Casa Olympe in Paris, where celibrities are frequently spotted. Reservations are tough unless you know one of the regulars who can get you in. This eatery isn’t much to look at from the outside, but its chef, the famous Olympe, has built her golden reputation on it since 1973 with her esoteric dishes made from out of the ordinary ingredients. Trusting that I can’t go wrong no matter what, I ordered pigmented squid on a bed of vermicelli. And when the waiter deposited the plate of food in front of me, I could swear that for a moment my stomach went cold.

There was vermicelli alright — and spread out on top of it was a mush of black inky colored strips that looked like fish bait gone bad. The whole mess was barely brightened up with a sprig of parsley. It was revolting to put it mildly, or as my daughter would say, “Ew.” But when I gamely tried a bite, it was devine. I couldn’t describe the taste for you, but my friends could testify that I cleaned my plate. Which goes to show that you can’t judge a dish by its unpalatable looks.

But not all of us can be the chef Olympe. The art of making a meal look appetizing is as significant as preparing it. Because from a decorator’s point of view, the food must be pretty no matter what; but from the cook’s, if people don’t eat what’s on their plate, then it’s a waste and a failure. Yet it’s possible to reconcile these two mindsets, especially when they tend to inhabit the same body.

Making attractive meals is particularly important when you’re feeding young children with developing taste buds. When something looks appealing, kids are more likely to give it a try — even if it’s healthy for them. My friend Yvonne Wade Sanchez from Houston is an expert in this field. As a working mother of two young boys, she doesn’t dispose of more time than any of us to make dinner. Her approach to cooking supper is simple and procedural, as befits her technical communication background:

1. Open the fridge and select a vegetable (or two).
2. Open the freezer and select a protein.
3. Open the pantry and select a carbohydrate.

With this triad, Yvonne creates simple and nutritious meals that her children and husband are happy to eat. Occasionally, she even ups the ante with “advanced” ingredients to cultivate their taste buds for further sophistication. On top of that, Yvonne uses creative ways to make her dishes so visually appealing that you’d think she could invite 12 people over for dinner at a moment’s notice.

So try applying color contrasts to liven up a dish. Yvonne uses simple white plates as a backdrop that won’t clash with anything she puts on them. Think of parsley, basil, and cucumbers for green; carrots, sweet peppers, and tomatoes for orange/red; then put them together for an eye-pleasing effect. Imagine a tuna sandwich cut in triangles and garnished with cherry tomatoes, cucumber slices, and extra mayonnaise (yellow). And of course, if the food looks good, it will taste good. It’s psychological. Hence the ‘food stylist’ (Yvonne’s term) and the cook can cohabitate and children as well as adults are happier for it.

I bet that even Chef Olympe’s inky squid would go down without a fight if Yvonne had found the right color scheme for it. Perhaps with white rice, and served for supper at a black and white ball?

Share with us your meal presentation secrets — on how to make a meal a feast.

Bon appétit!

For simple meal ideas, see Weeknight dinner strategies.
All photos are courtesy of Yvonne Wade Sanchez.

(*) Feast”ful\, a. Festive; festal; joyful; sumptuous; luxurious. “Feastful days.” –Milton. — Feast”ful*ly, adv.

Tagged as: Casa Olympe, paris